Queen Victoria once said if her people had plenty of good beer, there would be no revolution. How things change.

There's a beer revolution today that's a welcome revolt for fans of great beer.
It's spear-headed by independent, small-production craft brewers, whose aim is to make more full-flavoured beers like ales and stouts – in contrast to the usual light lagers to which we have become accustomed.
Craft brewers are innovating to bring back the flavour they believe is often sacrificed by many big corporate brewers who add sugar, chemicals and artificial ingredients to their beers.
Many craft brewers, on the other hand, use only natural ingredients. Some even pay homage to the German purity law, which only allows the use of malt, hops, yeast and water to make beer.
Bay of Plenty craft brewers include Croucher Brewery in Rotorua, Brewers Bar at Mount Maunganui and Aotearoa (Mata) Brewery of Kawerau. Others around New Zealand include Epic in Auckland, Renaissance in Marlborough and the Tuatara brewery in Waikanae. Unfortunately, due to the stranglehold that corporate breweries have on bars and store shelves, many of these small-production beer brands are difficult to find.
Fortunately beer lovers can find a wide range of craft-brewed beers at No. 1 The Strand, Hillsdene Fine Wines and local New World supermarkets.
Explore the beer universe yourself in a glass of Croucher pale ale, Renaissance porter or even a decent hefeweizen from Tuatara. Life would be boring if we ate only one type of vegetable. Ditto if we drink just one beer.
Watch this space for more on good and great beers.